


Bonds of Blood

by Grumpy_Bubble_Tea



Category: Hades (Video Game 2018)
Genre: Erinyes, Furies, Mending Relationships, Sisterly bonding
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-17
Updated: 2021-01-16
Packaged: 2021-03-14 20:14:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,827
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28801161
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Grumpy_Bubble_Tea/pseuds/Grumpy_Bubble_Tea
Summary: When Zagreus signs the Pact of Punishment to include a certain aspect called, "Extreme Measures," he forces Megaera, Alecto, and Tisiphone to work together, much to Megaera's dismay. This newfound, yet forced connection with her siblings creates all sorts of problems and tension for the Erinyes, yet most notably, for Megaera. She cannot bear the thought of another day with them.Furies/Erinyes-centric fic (primarily Meg, but will include much about Tisiphone and Alecto later on as well), about the girls' relationship changing overtime after Zagreus signs the Pact of Punishment, forcing the three to fight as one. Indefinitely. Multi-chaptered fic, to be updated consistently.
Comments: 2
Kudos: 16





	Bonds of Blood

Megaera didn’t like to admit it, but the list of things in this world that made her blood absolutely boil was a little longer than she cared to think it was. 

Somewhere on that list was the sort of things you would expect from a fury; She hated criminals, thieves, murderers, abusers--She wouldn’t make much of a good fury if she didn’t, really. Her job consisted primarily of punishing those who dared to break the laws and morals of the world, like Sisyphus, who was doomed to an eternity of both handling the heaviest boulder Megaera had ever seen, and dealing with her sisters’ wrath for cheating death. 

Somewhere else on this list there would be a spot for failure. She couldn’t stand failure. The first time Zagreus had struck her down, she could hardly believe what had happened. One moment, she was circling him in the arena, her whip taking nasty lashes and hits at him at every opportunity, pebbles, dirt, and dust on the floor kicked aside as the two moved about each other - yet the next moment, she was pinned to the ground by Stygius’ bright, bold-colored blade piercing through her stomach and into the stone below. 

She used to win that fight. She had a record of beating him, in fact, she had successfully stopped him from escaping Tartarus at least a good 5 or 6 times before she ever failed against him. To make a long story short, her walk back to her post from the House of Hades, drenched from the Styx’s waters and having to face the concerned and shocked looks of those in the house during her walk of shame was enough to piss her off for their next encounter. Even the one after that. 

But her failures were far from the top of her list. 

You know what wasn’t, though? 

“‘ _Pact of Punishment,’_ my ass--!” The fury bearing robes in a gentle pink, a whip held in her right palm as she stomped her foot in an angry fit against the floor, yelled aloud. Her frustration had been made quite clear on this day. “This is _stupid_! I wanna take that red-blood on, on my own--I wanna send him home crying like a damn kid!” 

Alecto. She was always loud like that. 

And right beside her, standing at a fairly shorter height and somewhat of a smaller build was the fury in green. She murmured under her breath, something akin to a growl coming out. It almost reminded Megaera of how Charon spoke. The oldest fury was one of few words, but her face and tone said it all; She, too, was beyond angry.

Tisiphone. She was always more subtle like that. 

There was nothing in this world that made Megaera’s blood boil quite like her sisters. 

The three of them stood together in Tartarus in a triangle formation; Meg was positioned, straight and tall, standing at the front with her two sisters behind her, one on each side of her; Alecto to her right and Tisiphone to her left. They were waiting, knowing fully well Zagreus had departed from the House some time ago, and was due here any minute now. Unfortunately, this gave ample time for Alecto to complain and whine about their current predicament, much to the others’ annoyance and dismay. 

Megaera wasn’t any happier to be bound to either sister, _especially_ by a Pact with her boss. There was no way in hell she would ever be able to find a way out of it unless she could convince Zagreus to revoke his consent to the terms. It pissed her off even more that she didn’t have a choice in the matter; It was just forced onto her. 

As she waited, she cracked her whip against the floor in an occasional rhythm, watching as little pebbles and debris nearby were sent flying away a few inches and slamming back down against the ground. It kept her hands busy, and most importantly, helped her keep her anger in check. She was just a few seconds away from wrapping this whip around Alecto’s neck and choking her until she went silent, if that was what it took to cease the endless yapping, whining, and cursing going on behind her. 

“I mean, _come on_ , don’t you guys think this is bullshit…!? We can take him on, on our own, the hell do we gotta work together for?” She spouted once more into the air, groaning afterwards, her frustration more clear than a sparkling clean window. 

_Crack!_ Megaera’s whip collided with the ground again, her force a little harder than it had been a moment ago. The pebbles by her weapon were sent a little further now, thanks to the increased effort behind her strike. Meg clutched the handle fairly tighter, taking a deep breath to keep her anger controlled. 

Alecto did not seem to pick up on this.

Tisiphone eyed Megaera and her whip in observant silence, though she did not move, nor did she speak. She glances towards the fury in pink, waiting to see just what she would do next. 

“ _SERIOUSLY,_ this is such a waste of my time!” Another round of yelling. Alecto throws her whip to the floor in frustration, growling aloud once more. “I can’t fucking believe this!” 

_Crack! Crack…!_

Meg’s grip on her whip’s handle tightens further. She holds onto it as though it is the rope keeping her from falling off a cliffside, striking the floor in the same manner a racket carelessly struck a tennis ball. And much like that ball, the little rocks and debris around her flew further away at each hit, skidding as they landed much further away. 

Tisiphone looked between Megaera and Alecto again, picking up on this direct cause and effect; Alecto’s borderline obnoxious venting fed into Megaera’s growing fuming like gasoline pouring into a flame. 

Yet still, Alecto did not seem to pick up on this. 

She yells once more into the bitter, cold air. 

“I don’t need this ridiculous fucking Pact! Hell, I could kill him any second if I wanted to-- I’d chop the damn kid into pieces!” Her body language grew dramatic, borderline erratic, as she threw her hands into the air and her footsteps became heavier, the sound resembling thunder striking the ground with every movement. “I can make that red-blood spill like a broken nectar bottle on the floor--”

_Crack!_

“-- _Any_ day,--”

_Crack…! Crack!_

“ _Any_ time,--” 

_CRACK! CRACK! CRACK--_

_“Any_ where, all on _MY FUCKING OWN_ -” 

_CRACK--_

**_THUNK!_ **

“... Mmmmr.” Tisiphone is the first to speak, musing silently as she gazes upon Megaera’s whip. 

Every strike had grown harder, harsher, and meaner as Alecto’s furious rambles had gone on. 

Each attack brought pebbles, then as the force grew harsher behind them, they cracked against the floor, and created little creases and wounds in the ground. Then, they turned into full on destruction, now leaving a little crater in the floor before the group; A small pit, perhaps a foot or two in diameter, and the dip of it cratered and cracked as it dared to break even further. Meg’s whip, now stilled by her newfound yet unintentional damage, laid dormant against the ground. 

Megaera’s eyes opened, having been squeezed shut from her frustrating yet determined attempts to shut Alecto’s voice out of her head. She released a tense, heavy breath she didn’t realize she had been holding in her chest. Her brows were still furrowed however, and her grip on her weapon did not falter in the slightest. 

She turns around to face her sisters, her movements slow, and tension still very much polluting the air around them. Her voice comes out in a strained groan. 

“If you were _really_ so capable of taking him out on your own,” She began, beginning to walk towards her sister, “We wouldn’t be here, now, would we?” 

Sizing her up with her eyes, Alecto cocked an eyebrow, her own hold on her whip’s handle strengthening. “The hell’re you on about?” 

Megaera rolled her eyes. “Don’t act stupid. The whole reason Lord Hades even put us together was because Zagreus signed a Pact. Do you understand what that means?” 

She took another step towards her. Alecto straightened up further, glaring Megaera down, her body language making it clear that Megaera’s sudden hostility intimidated her.

She would never admit it, though. 

“Let me make this _entirely_ clear for you- For the _both_ of you.” Megaera sighed. “Zagreus chose to agree for his father to force the three of us to work together because he has gotten past us individually. _Repeatedly._ Consistently. Non-stop.” 

Alecto scoffed. “Yeah, and so-fucking-what?”

“ _So_ ,” Meg huffed as she spoke, “He doesn’t see us as a threat. We’re nothing to him anymore. We used to be obstacles, and now we’re just like stepping stools on his climb to the surface. He has to go out of his way to make the fight even more difficult for him, because individually, we’re nothing to him.” 

“... Y-Yeah, well--Well--!” Alecto’s shoulders tensed further and her fists shook with pure rage filling her. 

Megaera copied her, her voice mocking in tone. “ _‘Yeah, well,’_ it’s the truth.” She shook her head, the disapproval and annoyance in her evident.

“You’re not going to get any damn stronger by throwing a tantrum. Especially when you know he could waltz in here any moment.” 

Alecto bit her tongue, but judging by how she glared at Megaera and tensed further, almost prepared to reel her arm back to strike her, it was clear just how livid she still was. She swallows down the profanities and insults she wanted to spew, opting instead to throw out a, “... Fine. Whatever, fine! I’ll be ready for him this time. Just you watch.” 

“We’ll see.” Megaera eyed her up and down before glancing towards Tisiphone. “And are you ready to take him on too, Tisiphone?”

Her tone was less of genuine care and concern, and more of a warning. _You better be ready, or else we’re going to have some problems._

Tisiphone was a woman of very few words, but she was far from a fool. She nods, mumbling something along the lines of, _“Mmmmurrr…”_ her own tone affirmative and confident. 

Megaera only offered her a single, silent nod in return, immediately turning her back to her sisters and her front to the door. As if on cue, the stone entrance slid upwards and open, revealing their guest of honor; Prince Zagreus, bearing his bright red robes, and holding that familiar red-orange blade.

  
The very same blade he had once skewered her with. Megaera almost winced at the sight; She was used to their fights to the death by now, but that didn’t mean they never bothered her. She just grew more and more numb to them overtime. 

Her sisters made her a little more sensitive to them, reminded her of just how weak she was. She hated that about them. 

That was why they were always at the top of her list. 

Megaera would soon add onto the reasons for their placement there too. Not only did they open old wounds, but they never seemed to hold their own weight.

They failed to stop the prince. Again. 

*

Megaera does not speak when she emerges from the pool of Styx, having arrived at the House of Hades. 

The turquoise and teal shades of the hall, even as they disperse to the walls to allow her room to walk through, murmur and whisper as she arrives. Doubtlessly commenting on her arrival again, as they always did. It used to annoy her, embarrass her even, for all the people who were supposed to be afraid of her to see her so weak and vulnerable. 

She wouldn’t be coming into the house through the pool if she had been strong enough to win. Everyone knew that very well by now. 

But by now, she has grown used to it. And even if she hadn’t, she is too pissed to pay them any mind. She makes her way down the hall, her head hung low, her eyes averting and avoiding the piercing gazes of all those around her. 

She ignores Hypnos when he chimes up joyfully as she passed, saying something along the lines of, “Wow, he got you again, huh? Man, Zagreus is so strong! I didn’t think he could get past you and both of the other furies, but I guess he’s always full of surprises!” 

Megaera does not even spare him a pissed grumble. She continues walking. 

She can feel Achilles’ eyes on her as she walks. She doesn’t go towards his hallway on the left of the pool; Rather, she’s going to the right, towards the lounge, but she was still very much in his line of sight. 

He doesn’t say a word. He knows better than to, and he can read his companions like open books--Megaera was not in the mood to be bugged and especially not by someone she was not overly close with. He keeps his lips shut, his head bowed, and his eyes closed. 

Hades is not at his desk when she walks by. Megaera did not know why, but right now, she didn’t particularly care. She was more than pleased to see his desk empty, for she did not have to have him watch her enter, watch her do her little walk of shame, or judge her with a disappointed, angry-laced glare as she squeezed the last of the Styx’s waters from the cloth in her skirt. 

She continues onwards, to the lounge. 

To her left now is Zagreus’ bedroom, the doorway wide and welcoming to all by appearance, yet by social understanding, there would always be a boundary there keeping her from entering, even if she wanted to. Not that she did want to. She didn’t want to even think of him or anything related to him right now, and so, she doesn't even do so much as spare a glance to her left. Her eyes lock onto her destination on her right; The lounge, where a few shades are residing at the round tables, and the broker is counting the gemstones he received the last time Zagreus had come by, and the chef is still chopping away at the violet onions on his pinecone-brown cutting board. Her feet step into the doorway, yet as they do, something gentle sets down on her shoulder and makes her freeze in her steps. 

“Megaera…” 

She knows that voice; Low, rich, feminine. The word is spoken with a certain gentleness and care to it as if to be accompanied by a mother’s gentle stroke of the cheek and punctuated with a kiss to the forehead. 

“... Nyx.” She doesn’t dare move. Partially because it would be rude to refuse the goddess’ attention, but primarily because as angry as she was, Megaera loved Nyx. She was something akin to a mother figure for her. She would never turn her away. 

“Are you well?” Nyx steps forward to meet Meg’s eyes. 

Megaera couldn’t help but avert her eyes within a few seconds of their gazes meeting. She wasn’t sure why, though perhaps from how ashamed she felt from her failure, or how livid she was that Zagreus got past her, or how frustrated she was with having to see her sisters again.

Perhaps it was a mix of all of the above. 

Regardless, her action was enough of an answer to the question. Silence washes over them before Nyx proposes a different inquiry. 

“May I get you something to eat, Meg? Perhaps a drink to go with it?”

Megaera sighed, her eyes settling on the carpeted floor beneath her feet. She gave one singular, tired nod. 

“... I’d… Appreciate that. Yeah.” 

. . .

Within a few minutes, the two have gotten situated at one of the vacant circular tables of the lounge. Megaera is standing at one side of the table, and opposite to her, Nyx is floating above the floor yet still attentively looking over the young fury with certain care and delicacy to her gaze. She had made sure Meg was comfortable before she even began to speak; Meg had a meal laid in front of her, consisting of freshly cooked fish from the House’s chef, the meat cut into pieces and charred lightly at the top, garnished too. At the side of her plate is an open bottle of nectar, yellow like the sun, dazzling like a diamond, and with an aroma almost sickeningly sweet. 

Megaera hasn’t touched her food yet. It all just reminds her of Zagreus, because she knows this fish was probably caught and turned in by him, and this nectar was something he had probably gifted to Nyx sometime ago. She felt like the wounds opened by her sisters had salt poured into them. 

Especially because Zagreus would have only acquired these items if he had gotten past her in Tartarus, and she knows full well,  _ painfully _ well that he has. A countless amount of times. As she is internally beating herself up for this knowledge, Nyx opens her mouth and speaks up. 

“... He’s gotten a lot stronger lately, hasn’t he?” Nyx’s eyebrows raise just a bit, her voice still calm and gentle, though Megaera still felt like she was being jabbed in cuts and scrapes that hadn’t even begun to heal. She swallows hard before she speaks, her hands balled into fists at her side.

“... Yes. He has.” She speaks in an exasperated exhale, the words almost physically straining to get out. “... Too strong for me, that’s… That’s damn sure.” 

Nyx fell into silent contemplation at this, glancing towards her plate before she responded. “... He has outgrown  _ this house _ . He has not outgrown  _ you _ . Do not be mistaken, my child.”

Megaera nodded, though only to ensure she had heard Nyx’s words, and she’d understood them. Not that she entirely agreed with them. Yet even if she did, they were hardly her biggest concern. 

“... Something else ails you,” Nyx notes, reaching over to gently take Megaera’s hand. Her fingers, moving carefully and slowly, unfold Megaera’s hand from its balled fist. She interlocks their fingers as she always did when she spoke to her little ones, during their special heart-to-hearts. 

The fury looked down at their intertwined hands. “... Lord Hades has had Zagreus sign a Pact.”

“His… Pact of Punishment, correct?”

“Yes, yeah…” 

Nyx nods. “And how has that impacted you so poorly?” 

Megaera fell silent for a moment. The very thought of mentioning Alecto and Tisiphone evoked a certain rage, or annoyance, or just… Shame, in her. To have to work with them, to have to be with them, to have her reputation rely on them…

… It was too much for her. 

“... He has me working directly with Tis and Alecto, to fight Zagreus. And _ as you can see _ , that hasn’t changed a damn thing. Zagreus can still force his way... right through us as he pleases.” A deep, heavy breath she hadn’t even noticed she’d been holding in her chest released as the words left her lips. She almost felt a weight against her lungs. 

Nyx went into another fit of contemplation, her hand still holding Megaera’s, rubbing the back of the fury’s hand with her thumb to comfort her. Admittedly, she didn’t know for sure how well it was working but seeing as Meg hadn’t flat out pulled away yet, she figured it must have calmed her to a degree. 

“... I understand this must be hard for you, Megaera.” Nyx began, a small sigh of her own escaping. “Family can be a… A difficult topic for most of us.” 

“You’re telling me…” 

“... But… Perhaps this is a good thing.” 

The words take Megaera by surprise. Her fingers, the ones so leisurely interlocked with Nyx’s, tense. “... What?” 

Nyx continues, patiently, slowly, carefully. She knows full well that she is treading on dangerous waters. “This may be for the best. Zagreus, as you know, has been making leaps and bounds in his connection with his Olympian relatives. You may be able to do the same with your sisters--”

“Are you saying I should be  _ happy _ to work with those animals?” The question slipped out so quickly, so sharply that even Megaera was surprised to hear the sound of her own voice asking it. 

Nyx raised her free hand, signaling for Megaera to calm down. “Megaera, what I mean is that they can help you, in more ways than just upholding the requirements of your, of the Pact-” 

Megaera’s hand jolted free from Nyx’s, moving to slam against the table. The frustration in her, bottled up, began to erupt at once. The wounds her sisters had opened, that had been abused and teased throughout this entire conversation, finally began to bleed. “Look, Nyx, my sisters aren’t like your boys, okay…!?”

If Nyx had made any attempts to calm her, none had reached her ears. This was her own way of being raged like Alecto, after so much time calmly biding her emotions in her as Tisiphone did. 

“My sisters have _ never _ been like them. Do you think if Alecto was  _ half _ as competent and respectful and diligent as Thanatos, that I’d be so ashamed to have to call them my sisters!?” 

She had both hands on the table now, anger built in her expression, tears begrudgingly welling in her eyes yet she wasn’t even sure why. 

“ Or if Tisiphone was even a quarter as calm, as tame as Hypnos, that I’d hate working with her? They’re  _ animals _ . They’re not even allowed inside the House, and you know damn well why that is, and I won’t let anyone here make me forget that. Whether that be Zagreus, or whether that be  _ you _ .” 

Megaera stepped back from the table, her hands returning to her sides, those fists returning, the tension in her body returning, the glare in her gaze returning--But now, it was joined by gentle glistening beads that she wouldn’t dare to let fall. Not now, not ever, and especially not here where everyone could see. 

If Nyx had made any verbal protests to stop her, she did not hear them initially. She only turned away and marched from the table, through the doorway. It isn’t until she approaches that she realizes her path is partially blocked, by none other than the young Prince who had sent her back here so soon.

But she doesn’t react to him. Not at all.

She hears him call her name. She hears Nyx call after her too, vaguely, somewhere amidst the anger filling her head. Her shoulder collides with Zagreus’ partially shoving him out of the way, and through her now hitching voice, she growls.

_ “Stay the hell away from me.”  _

And just after she speaks, she resumes her livid march out of the lounge and away from the public eye, retreating to her room. She had to rest anyway if she was going to try to defeat him again tomorrow.


End file.
